Those Awkward Teenage Weeks

Two weeks old and they are not chicks anymore. They aren't exactly adult chickens yet either. They are caught in that in between time. It isn't pretty.

But I did learn something new about these Cornish X chickens today. I knew that they were a cross between a White Plymouth Rock hen and a Cornish Rooster, but for the life of me could not figure out how that cross made such large meaty birds. Plymouth Rocks are decent sized birds, but not these huge fast growing things. And when I think Cornish chickens I think of the Cornish game hens that you buy whole at the grocery store. Small, but delicious birds right?

Well, yes, but they are only small because they are butchered at four weeks old. Yes, you read that right, four weeks, one month, 28 eight days, say it how you like, but those are very young birds. The fact that they are that size at the age gives a little perspective to the size of the chicks we have.

Still curious, I dug a little deeper. The Cornish birds are a very short yet stocky bird that is double breasted. They are crosses with the Plymouth Rock because the Rocks are a taller bird. The result is a whole lot of meat. The cross is also what most commercial farmers use, and thus is the chicken we are used to in the grocery store.

Sorry to bore you with my chicken talk, but I found it interesting. :)

The Difference a Week Makes

Our chicks are doing so well. Today we gave the brooding pen a good cleaning and separated the Baird Rocks and Cornish X's. They are now a week old and it is amazing how much they have changed already. The pictures below are from the day we got them.

In a week's time, they have eaten about 50 lbs of food. They have most of their wing feathers, and are starting to get tail feathers. The biggest change however, is the size difference between the two breeds.

They were hatched on the same day, and essentially were the same size when they arrived. You can see from the above picture that is no longer the case. The Cornish X chicks are huge compared to the Bairds. I didn't weigh them, but I bet they are almost double the weight. Tales of their fast growth are not exaggerated. And it is no wonder, because all they seem to do is eat.

We pulled all the chicks out this morning while we were working on the pen. When we put the Bairds in they checked out their pen. A few of them went to the feed or water, but the vast majority pecked around the "new" place checking it out. When we put the Cornish Xs in it was completely opposite. Probably 90% of them went straight for the feed. They had been out of their pen (and away from feed) for less than an hour. By the way they attacked the feed you'd think they hadn't eaten all day. It was funny to watch.

Chicks change so fast. Right now they are still cute and fuzzy and lovable. That won't last long. Soon they will be looking like chickens, and I will be looking forward to put some of them in my freezer.

These are the Days I Love

Lately, it seems like our life is so hectic. That this simple living thing is far from simple. That something has to give, but I can't seem to figure out what. It has been exhausting. And then a day like today comes along and everything feels alright again.

Could I ask for a more perfect day? The weather is simply gorgeous. The sun is shining. The birds are signing, and things are turning green.

Tim stayed home this morning, and we worked together on the farm. I know it sounds a little strange, but those are some of my favorite times. So, often we are working apart, at our respective places of employment, and working apart on farm jobs while he and Papaw tend to the heavier jobs, and I tend to the garden, the kids, and the care of the smaller animals.

It wasn't a monumental task. We simply walked up to the barn to walk the ewes and lambs from the nursery pen back to the shed here. Something about being in the sunshine, working with the animals along side my man just feels right.

Then the kids disappeared; for hours. Kellen helped Papaw with fencing and hauling manure, and the other three packed a backpack for "adventures in the woods." You know what that means right? Alone time for mom. Hours of alone time.

Don't get me wrong. I love my kids. I love spending time with them, but alone time is an extremely rare and precious thing for this slightly introverted, full time homesteading/homeschooling, part time working mom. Being alone is thoroughly refreshing.

What did I do with all that glorious time alone? I worked in the garden a little. I baked a little. Cleaned a little. Basked in the sunshine while working on laundry a little. Dabbled on the computer a bit. Really does it matter?! I did it alone, and it was all wonderful!

And the icing on the cake? Tonight is the Faculty Lounge, a time for homeschooling moms to get together. A blissful day I tell you! 

These are the kind of days I love. These are the kind of days I need more of.

150 Peepers

Today we got 150 newly hatched chicks in the mail. We ordered from Mt Healthy this year. And so far I am very pleased. The chicks were hatched today and we go the call from the post office this afternoon that the chicks had arrived. They all made the trip and look good.

100 of the chicks are Cornish X Crosses (the yellow ones.) We are co-oping with several other families to raise these birds for meat. We also ordered 50 chicks "hatchery choice." I was expecting a mix of birds in this
group, but it looks like we got a straight run of Barred Rocks. They are the black chicks. I was actually hoping for a mix of chickens just to try a few different breeds, but I am happy with the Barred Rocks, and for the price, I can't complain.

The chicks are of course adorable, but getting them all settled while four kids "helped" was a little chaotic. The goal was to get each chick a drink and then place it in warm pen. The chicks kept trying to escape, and 150 of those little peepers all together is very loud.





Tonight Tim and I went and checked them after we got the kids to bed. They were much more settled, not to mention quiet. Many of them were zonked out for naps. I think we just sat there and watched and played with them for about half and hour. They are just too cute, when they are quiet anyway!

A Certain Je ne sais Quoi

The English language is full of oddities and exceptions to the rule. That I suppose is why it is said to be one of the more difficult languages for non native speakers to learn. It is why it presents many challenges to native speakers also.

The English language also includes many foreign phrases. Some retaining their original meaning and others having morphed into something completely different. Did you know that Paparazzi, the word now used to describe pesky celebrity photographers, mean mosquitoes in Italian? The current use of the word came about from its usage in a movie.

A la mode means fashionable in French. In the seventeenth century the English used this phrase to describe a light silk used to make scarves. Here it has come to mean with ice cream. Strange, the history of words.

Phrases such as the Spanish mi casa es su casa, my house is your house,  are used in their original meaning.  Derriere is French for bottom. Guru means teacher in Sanskrit. Verbatim means word for word in Latin.

No, I am not a master of words who knew all these bits of trivia off the top of my head, though I do find them rather interesting. I found these bits of word history in a book I was recently sent to review, A Cerntain "Je Ne Sais Quoi" - The Origin of Foreign Words Used in English. 

Foreign words and phrases that are used in English are arranged alphabetically in this book. Each word or phrase includes the language or origin, the original meaning, and a little history behind how the word and meaning have come to the English language.

I enjoyed browsing through this book. I learned a lot and was surprised at some of the history behind the words. I think anyone who enjoys words would enjoy this book.

Hasta la vista.

Farm News: The Good and the Bad

Raising animals gives the family a certain appreciation, not to mention education, about the cycle of life. Saturday another lamb was born, a little ram. That makes three for three. One more sheep to lamb this month and then there won't be anymore babies for awhile.

Today we put Daisy, the female donkey in with Luigi, the male donkey. Lydia asked, "Why do you want to move Daisy in with Luigi?" I looked at her and said, "Why do you think we would want to do that?" It was like a light bulb went on, and she said, "Oh you want them to breed." Yep. In about a year we should have a little donkey foal.

We are venturing into raising chickens, co-op style. We are planning to purchase 100 Cornish X chicks very soon. We have sold shares in these birds. I am really excited for this project. A little nervous too because we've never done anything quite like this, but I think it is going to be good! You can see the details on our Facebook page. Click on the discussion tab.

The bad news is that one of our doe goats died. She wasn't showing any of the usual signs of illness, but Sunday morning we found her dead. Her kids are three weeks old. They are eating some feed and hay, but really aren't ready for weaning yet. We hoped that one of the other nursing does in the barn would foster them, but the does want nothing to do with the kids that are not theirs. Luckily we were able to find another "momma" willing to foster them.

Lydia loves being a little momma to the animals that need a little extra TLC. Feeding these kids a couple of bottles a day will help them with the transition.

And that is news from the farm.

Vivian is four!

Happy birthday to my Vivi girl!

The Class Clown

When I was teaching in the public schools, dealing with a class clown was to be expected. When I gave that up to teach at home, I never really expected to have that kind of challenge again, and for a long time I didn't. Then Nolan started school and the antics began.

Nolan is rather witty for a five year old. Daily he has something quirky, funny, or just plain ridiculous to say during school. Sometimes it is funny, sometimes annoying, but it is always distracting to the rest of us trying to get things done.

Today he had us rolling on the floor with a couple of his remarks. We were reading a Bible story and it mentioned the seasons. He looked a little confused. I asked him if he remembered what the seasons were. His response, "You mean gun season?"

The story continued and talked about the first man and woman created. He had a little trouble remembering their names. I reminded him that the man was Adam, and then asked if he remembered the name of the woman. "Madame," he said.

Yes, everyone was distracted from their school work when these comments were made. Yes, I was laughing too. How could I not? This is my Nolan. He is the class clown even if there are only three other kids in the class. At least, from a teacher's perspective, reeling in a class of four to get back on task is a lot easier than a class of twenty four. 

Milking Sheep

I love this time of year. Just when I think I can't stand anymore cold or anymore snow, and for the record I can't, just when I feel like the walls are closing in, the babies start coming. In the past few weeks we have had four new kids, two lambs, and two chicks born, or hatched as the case may be. New baby animals do require some time and work, but it is all so exciting, and they are so cute that they just chase the winter blahs away. The last births were just Tuesday morning. Two male lambs:

The one is slightly smaller than the other, but they both seem to be doing very well. Just one problem. One side of the mama's udder was clogged and we didn't realize it at first. Since the lambs weren't getting milk on that side they stopped trying there.

Last night when that side of the udder and teat were noticeable swollen, Tim milked her and eventually cleared the clog. We tried to encourage the lambs to nurse there, but they still fight over the other teat. This afternoon that side was swollen again. We want to keep milk flowing there to help avoid mastitis and to keep both sides producing for when these guys are a little bigger and will need more milk, so Tim milked her again. This time though we kept the milk.

Sheep milk may seem odd to most Americans, but world wide sheep milk is a common thing. See Dairy Sheep for more information. This milk was thick. It looks like eggnog in color and consistency. I wasn't sure what to expect. I kind of expected a mutton-y taste, but I was wrong. It did not have a strong flavor at all. I can't say that I really liked it, but I didn't dislike it either. I am not a big milk drinker anyway, so that may be part of the problem.The kids liked it.

So, I've been toying with the idea of a dairy animal, likely a goat, for some time. The kids are all for it, well all for the drinking of it any way. They aren't too thrilled about the work involved. One of the biggest reasons we do not have a dairy goat is because of the commitment. When you are milking, you are committed to milking once or twice a day for months. The other problem when considering a dairy animal is that we really don't have a good place set up to milk.

So at dinner last night, after tasting the sheep milk, the kids started asking me if we were going to milk all the time. We talked about the problems we would have to solve, and I told them to come up with a plan for where to milk and we would be that much closer to having a dairy animal. They believed me.

Here is Lydia's plan:

Her plan for "daree guote" includes the kids (us) in the barn with the goat (g). Notice the udder and the child on the stool with the bucket full of milk.

Kellen's plan:

Kellen's plan involves building a stall for the animal. It would stand in the center block here. The left panel of the stall would have a door that opens to slide in a bucket of feed. Then you would slide a panel in front of the animal. The panel is adjustable for size as shown by the three small rectangles in the panel. The right panel of the stall has a small door so you can reach in to milk, because you wouldn't want to be in the stall with the animal would you?

Not so sure that either of these plans are exactly what we need, but I certainly do appreciate the effort, thought and creativity put into both of them. For right now though, I think I let the baby animals do the milking.

Whatcha Hiding There?

And Winter Drags On

More snow. More cancellations. More hours stuck at home, in the house making me feel like the tree above, lifeless.

That picture was taken this morning, almost all of that snow accumulated over night. The tree? That is our Christmas tree, after the goats have eaten all the needles off of it. Why is now in the middle of a snow pile in the front yard? I have no explanation. I guess another member of the family will have to explain that to you.

Though I am thoroughly and completely sick of winter, and all that white stuff that comes with it, there have been a few bright spots in the last week. We have new goat kids. New babies on the farm are always exciting. Will I ever tire of it? But new goat babies? Well that just makes me happy. They are my favorite. In the last week we've had twin doelings, and a single buckling born.


Aren't they just the cutest things? I don't think that we will be keeping any of these, and that is a little sad, but I will enjoy them while I can. They are so playful and fun. They are in the barn now. I can't wait until this never ending winter finally ends and we can watch them playing outside in the woods behind the house.

I'm also getting the gardening itch in a major way. I'm going to have to settle for starting some seeds inside. I think playing in the dirt, and watching something green grow will be very therapeutic for me.

What are you doing as these winter months drag on?

The Farm is on Facebook

We have a Facebook page! Find us at Mil-Ton Farms. Though I've made my blog Adventures in the 100 Acre Woods, the legal name of the farm is Mil-Ton Farms. Mil for Miller (my parents' last name) and Ton for Appleton, our last name. The name is also very fitting since we are near Milton WV. Anyway, we plan to use the Facebook page for updates on farm business. Check us out and become a fan!

Do you think it is Biggest Loser or Wii Fit?

The hundred acre wood is buried in snow, again. This feels to me like the winter that will never end, but the kids seem to be enjoying the frequent snow storms we are having this year.

Today Miles, Ashley, Lydia and Nolan went out sledding for several hours. Lydia came in just a few minutes ago, and I asked her how the sledding was. "Awesome! What a way to burn those calories," was her response.

That wasn't exactly what I was expecting. Perhaps we've been watching too much fitness media?

Today I Rode a Pig

Today the last of this batch of hogs went to the butcher. Only one remained. Loading it should have been an easy job. Papaw designed the hog house for easy loading. Simply back the trailer to the door. Herd the hogs through the pens, into the alley, and up onto the trailer. It really works well, most of the time anyway.

This morning all went as planned. The hog went through the pen and down the alley, but when her nose got to the trailer, she stopped. We pushed and prodded, and that darn hog would not step up onto the trailer. Then she did something that none of the hogs have tried before. She squeezed under the trailer, and out into the open.

While we were trying to regroup, my job was to keep her from getting by me and back behind the building. Usually, we use wooden panels to herd the hogs, but I did not have one when this sly fat hog slipped away from us. It was me versus a 300 lb hog.

She made a move, and I countered, determined to not let her get by me and out into the open woods. This went on for a few minutes, until she tired of the game and decided to try something different.

She put her snout down and came toward me. So quick I couldn't react, she wedged her snout between my knees, raised up her head, and kept going forward. I was riding on her back. Thankfully, she didn't go far, but she was just tall enough (and I am just short enough) that I couldn't get my footing to just let her pass under me. Thankfully the ride didn't last long. Papaw was out with the panels and able to direct her back and out from under me. Just add pig riding to my farming resume.

The Typing Champ!

The challenge was laid down. The keyboard keys were whirring all month. The testing day finally arrived, and the outcome was close, very close. But who won? Check it out here.

Parenting According to Tim

Tim is a wonderful dad. I couldn't ask for a better. He spends a lot of time with the kids both playing and working. The kids adore him, and I think secretly look forward to the weekends when I am at work and they are home with daddy.

Tim and I are both committed to raise these kids to be adults. That may sound a little strange, because all kids are going to become adults right? I just mean that we are purposeful about teaching the kids responsibility and giving them the skills they need for life. From that desire Tim has come up with some words of wisdom that our kids are very familiar with. All parenting comes down to these key phrases.

1) Suck it up.

2) Start saving.

3) I don't care. (directed at excuses and whining)

4) And failure is your best friend.

Words to parent by.

A Matter of Perspective I Guess

This afternoon Nolan was sitting in the living room while I was trying to get a few things together for this weekend. I over heard him talking to himself.

Nolan: There were no TVs back then. There were no cars.

Me: What are you talking about?

Nolan: There were no cars in the 70's.

Me: There were cars in the 70's.

He pondered a minute, and then gave me his famous ornery smile.

Nolan: The sixties?

Me: There were cars and TVs in the 60's.

Nolan: Oh. Well sometime long ago there were no TVs or cars.

Then he went back to playing the Wii. I guess to the mind of a 5 year old the 70s (when his parents were born) and the 60s (slightly before we were born) are ancient history. Times that were so long ago that surely no TVs or cars could have existed. I'm feeling very old right now.

Change is the Only Constant

It seems the one thing we can count on around here is change. There is never cause to be bored because there is always something new going on. That is how life works especially on the homestead. Especially with the particular people that live here. I'm not complaining. That would be pointless, but sometimes I do have trouble keeping up with all the changes.

Where to begin? Well there is the story about going to Ohio to visit Grandma and Grandpa. We had a good few days there. We changed vehicles with Jake and Delilah while there. The plan was to bring their van back for repairs, but on the trip home we were stranded on I-77, in the middle of nowhere, for about four hours with all the kids in the vehicle. Now, that was fun.

Lydia had a birthday this week. She now is eight. She had a friend spend the night for her birthday. It is funny to watch them. They are in that stage of change between little girls and big girls. One minute they are planning with babies and Barbies. The next they are doing each others nails.

There have been two new litters of pigs born recently. Two more are expected soon. We've been getting rid of fat hogs to make room for the new litters. My freezer is now full of fresh pork. Yum.

We had a goat that we noticed was not herself. We separated her from the rest. With in a couple days we really thought we were going to lose her. She couldn't get up. She would not eat or drink unless you forced her. We considered putting her out of her misery.

The vet gave us a steroid shot, penicillin, and thiamine to give her. It took a few days, but then we saw improvement. A few days later she was getting up and around. She still is a little weak and we are keeping her separate, but it looks as if she will make it.

My niece and nephew, Ashley and Miles, and their mother, my ex-sister-in-law Amy are now permanent residents of the 100 Acre Wood. The story of all our relationships is a long one. It is a complicated one, and the fact that they are all living here is still kind of amazing to me.

They have moved into my parents house. My parents are moving into a house that was supposed to be fixed up for my brother, and then when he chose not to live there (another long complicated story,) was designated to be a guest home. It needed a lot of work, but as a guest house, fixing it was not a high priority. So currently my parents are trying to finish that house, move their stuff into it in the midst of Amy trying to unpack her stuff into the house they are all living in now. Can we say mass chaos?

Talk about change.

On Facebook lately lots of people have been changing their profile picture to pictures of when they were young. I chose the picture below. I think it was from around second or third grade.


I was kind of surprised about the comments saying that Kellen looks just like me. I'd never really noticed that before. Though I do have to admit, after looking at our pictures together, that there certainly is some truth to those comments. Ignore the turkey hat. It is one of the few recent picture I have of him smiling. Let me just say, Kellen is just thrilled to be told he looks like his mother. Can you feel the sarcasm here?

Change is always happening. It keeps life interesting. I wonder what changes are awaiting us today?

The Right Motivation

A large part of the educational process is motivating kids to learn, and teaching them to learn to motivate themselves. Most kids are self motivated to learn about the things they are naturally talented or interested in, but for other areas they often need a little push.

Our kids for the most part, enjoy the learning process, and are excited for their school work. For that, I am very grateful, but every once in awhile we come up against a little learning wall that needs pushed through. In the early years for Kellen it was reading. He really struggled when it didn't click at first. But we pushed through, or perhaps more accurately phrased, I pushed him through, and now he is in avid reader.

Later, it was multiplication tables. Kellen gets math. It clicks with him. He taught himself the concept of multiplication around the first grade. His older cousin was learning it, and he thought he should too. The concept clicked with him, but when he was older, and it came time to memorize the facts he struggled. He just did not want to take the time needed for memorization. It was a battle, but eventually I pushed him through that too.

Currently, the wall we face is typing. He completed a typing program a few years ago only because I agreed to suspend his handwriting assignments while he was learning to type. The CD program we had made it interesting and fun, and there really wasn't much of a battle. He did well with it, and after he completed the program I didn't think much about his typing skills.

Fast forward to the present, and Kellen is typing a lot. He blogs. He emails. He plays games, and does research. All the while I assume that since he has learned to type before, that he is now typing correctly while using the computer. My assumption was wrong. He has reverted to the hunt and peck method of typing.

Since learning this information I have been after him to type the right way, but he claims he has forgotten the key board and that he can type pretty fast his way. Before Christmas I informed him that part of the new semester would included typing practice. He was none to thrilled. Well, at least not until Tim stepped in with the right motivation.

Tim also hunts and pecks while typing, and has said before that he wants to learn to type. So, when he heard that Kellen was re-learning to type, he issued a challenge. They both are practicing and honing their skills. At the appointed day there will be a type off. Who ever types the fastest wins a Wii game of their choice.

Kellen jumped all over that challenge, and has been practicing typing voluntarily all week. Today when he finished his school work, he asked if he could use the computer. This usually means he wants to play a game or browse through Nintendo stuff, but today he wanted the computer to practice his typing!

Tim knew just the right button to push to motivate Kellen. Instead of me forcing, pushing, and prodding him to learn the skill we want him too, he is now eagerly learning that skill. In the other examples of learning struggles given above, the skills were learned, but only after much battling and frustration for both of us. I don't think large rewards are necessary for every accomplishment, but I have seen first hand the difference it makes to use the right motivation for a child who has hit a learning wall. I guess Kellen and I are both learning some skills this semester.

Toilet Seats for Christmas and Other Fun

We got the kids a toilet seat for Christmas.

Yes, you read that right, a toilet seat. Aren't we wonderful parents?

For those of you who know about our four gifts for Christmas tradition, this is not part of the four gifts. This we are considering a bonus gift. We are just spoiling these kids aren't we?

Our house has two bathrooms. Our bathroom came with a wooden toilet seat. The kids' bathroom came with the standard white seat. What they are made of I have no idea. The kids thought they had been shorted. They protested that our toilet seat was so much more comfortable than their toilet seat. Kellen especially would use any excuse to use our bathroom instead of his own. A daily question would come from him, "Mom, can I use your bathroom?" My daily response, "NO!" Call me selfish, but my bathroom gets enough stink without adding the funk from an eleven year old boy.

Time passed, and eventually our much loved and coveted toilet seat developed a crack. No one wants to get pinched by a crack in a toilet seat now do they? Tim picked up a new and of course, wooden toilet seat for us.

The kids were so in love with our wooden toilet seat that they begged us to put the old cracked one on their toilet. We of course, refused because if anything is going to be hurting their behind we want it to be intentional, not just an accidental pinch from the toilet seat. They would have to make do with their common white toilet seat.

Then I had an idea. Wouldn't it be fun to put a new wooden toilet seat in the kids' bathroom late Christmas Eve? We could install it and even add a bow and a ribbon. Tim outright laughed at me, and argued that there was nothing wrong with the toilet seat that was already in there. Eventually, he did think it would be a fun extra gift for the kids, and agreed to pick up another wooden toilet seat.

Unfortunately our plans were a bit spoiled by an eleven year old, who amazingly, while watching a movie on the other side of the house, can hear me talking on the phone to his father about a surprise Christmas gift. Yet, he can not hear me when I'm am right in front of his face asking him to unload the dishwasher. Uncanny.

Even with the surprised foiled, Tim bought a new wooden toilet seat. Kellen installed it, and now everyone has happy bottoms while taking care of business in the bathroom. Merry Christmas!



And if that wasn't enough fun for one post........


Remember all the snow we got last weekend? With temperatures hovering around the freezing mark, most of that snow is still here.

Nolan has an issue with underwear. He loves boxers, but prefers to wear them alone. If he is wearing sweat pants, he never puts underwear on unless made to. He will wear underwear with zip pants, though, after learning the hard way that zippers and naked bottoms do not go well together.

Sunday, when I came home from work, Kellen informed me that he owed Nolan a dollar. This was a problem because Kellen could not get the safe where he keeps his money open. That is another story, but I promise that the snow, the underwear, and the dollar are all part of the same story even though these paragraphs seem totally unrelated.

Apparently, while I was at work, and Tim was working outside, the boys were in the house. Nolan was having a boxers only day, and it was getting on Kellen's nerves. Kellen bet Nolan that Nolan couldn't run to the Y, a spot in the driveway about 1/4 mi from the house, in his boxers and crocs in the snow.

Did I mention that Kellen owes Nolan a dollar?